A boy and his grandmother read a book at an evacuation centre in a gymnasium in Yamagata, northern Japan.

A student volunteer holds a sign saying "Instant noodles, one per head" for evacuees from Futaba, a city near the quake-stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

A calendar shows the date of the massive earthquake as 86-year-old Teru Suzuki cleans her damaged home in Ofunato. "It could only be destiny," says Suzuki, who has survived two other big earthquakes in her lifetime.

Akira Abe speaks at a news conference after his 16-year-old son Jin Abe was rescued nine days on from the earthquake.

Japan Self Defense Force officers survey the damage in the destroyed Otsuchi village, Iwate Prefecture in northern Japan, more than a week after the earthquake.

80-year-old Sumi Abe and her 16-year-old grandson Jin are rescued from under the rubble in Ishinomaki City, nine days after Japan an earthquake and tsunami ravaged Japan.

A group of rescue workers observes a minute of silence to mourn for the victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Rikuzentakata, Iwate prefecture on March 18.

An elderly couple delivers food to their relatives who are victims of the earthquake and tsunami in Minamisanriku City, Miyagi Prefecture